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| Centers for Diptongos Crecientes & Decrecientes. |
If you are wondering how to teach diphthongs in Spanish--in primary--as part of the literacy sequence for your class, then stick with me because in this post I will show you an easy way to understand 'diptongos', and I will show you some centers that you can use to easily teach, or to easily reinforce student learning of diptongos in kindergarten through 2nd grade.
For many Bilingual or Dual Language Teachers, diphthongs, or 'diptongos' can be very confusing because diphthongs are not the ordinary 'silaba directa' or 'silaba trabada' or 'silaba mixta'. Diptongos require a bit more focus on our part as teachers, especially if we did not study our teacher prep in Spanish, or in a Spanish-speaking country.
So if you are slightly perplexed with the 'how-tos' of Diptongos, let alone how to teach diptongos to the Littles, then you need to:
1) Have a simple understanding of what diptongos are: Simply stated Diptongos are syllables in Spanish that are made of a sequence of 2 vowels.
and
2) You need some simple ways to teach them.
This post is going to keep it simple, because the focus in the primary grades is on teaching initial literacy skills in Spanish. The focus here is not on accentuation or anything other than teaching kids to read in Spanish.
What are Spanish Diphthongs?
As stated above, Spanish Diphthongs (diptongos) are simply a set of 2 vowels that work together to form one syllable.
To better understand the "2 vowels as 1 syllable" a very simple test is to say a word with a 'sÃlaba diptongada' in it as you place your hand under your chin. If this is a 'silaba diptongada', then you will feel your jaw open against your hand only once for that syllavel. HOWEVER, you must pronounce the word naturally, without exaggerating the vowels.
Some words to try: aguacate, bailar, anciana, escuela, apio, pies, Lourdes... and the list goes on.
For our purposes of teaching initial literacy skills in Spanish, there are 2 different kinds of diptongos to be aware of:
1. Diptongos Crecientes: These diptongos begin with a weak/'debil' (or 'closed/cerrada') vowel first, and then the strong vowel. The reason the diptongo is called 'creciente' is because this means that as you say the syllable, your mouth grows open as you say the syllable-- 'crece'.
These vowel combinations are: ia / ie / io / ua / ue / uo.
2. Diptongos Decrecientes: These syllables are totally to the contrary. They are 'decrecientes' meaning that as you say the syllable your mouth, or jaw, goes from more open for the strong vowel, to more closed for the weak vowel. These vowel combos start with the open vowel to the closed vowel, or the strong vowel, to the weak vowel.
These vowel combinations are: ai / au / ei / eu / oi / ou.
How can I effectively teach my Kindergarten, First or Second Grade class Spanish Diphthongs?
First of all, know that kiddos don't need the technical jargon above so that they can do the reading. They might be able to understand about their jaw 'opening' or 'closing' with the vowel combos, but they might not understand this. That concept is not important for kiddos learning to read in Spanish.
However, when kids are learning to read 'silabas diptongadas' or 'silabas directas' they do need to understand about the vowels coming together to form one syllable, as opposed to the vowels being split up as the word is pronounced.
The easiest way to test out the number of syllables in a word is by putting the top of your hand under your chin as you say the word. If you feel your chin 'touch' or 'move' your hand, then there is more than one syllable. But remember, of course, not to exaggerate the pronunciation of the word and/or the syllable.
Steps to effectively teach Spanish Diphthongs.
1. Teach kids to recognize the syllables in each word.
As you use the 'hand under chin' method mentioned above, make sure kids do not exaggerate the pronunciation, and be sure that everyone is pronouncing the word naturally. This is the first step in recognizing 'silabas diptongadas', or any other kind of syllable as well.
2. Create an anchor chart with the Spanish Diphthongs.
When your class can 'feel' the syllables as they say the words, then create with your class an anchor chart with the 2 different types of diphthongs:
Diptongos Crecientes: Diptongos Decrecientes:
ia / ie / io / ua / ue / uo ai / au / ei / eu / oi / ou
3. Use word work and sentence building centers for student learning reinforcement.
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| Click on the image to see this resource on Teachers pay Teachers. |
Using centers in your classroom is a routine that we all do so that we can meet in small groups. I encourage you to check these out.
4. Use Shared Reading as you teach Spanish Diphthongs.
Shared Reading, like centers, is something that as teachers we do in our own way, and these resources are some examples that you can use.
Also, if you are looking for ways to use shared reading in your room, here is a video where I share my 5-Day Plan for any shared reading passage. I absolutely love this one!
5. Use Lecturitas as you teach Spanish Diphthongs.
Of course we want the kids to read right away, and this is why I created these little booklets as a part of this resource! Once you have taught kids to recognize the syllables, and they can read the words with the syllables, then this is the perfect time to give them practice reading booklets!
In Conclusion, the best way that I have found for teaching diptongos is by using El Dictado Trifecta in conjunction with the centers.
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| Click on the image to see this resource on TpT. |
I hope that this post has helped you and that you have been able to glean some tips from here. If this post has helped you out, please leave a kind comment!
Happy teaching,
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